Windy City Queer: LGBTQ Dispatches from the Third Coast, a recently released literary anthology, highlights contributions by the gay and lesbian literary community in Chicago. Residents and visitors can meet editor Kathie Bergquist over at Women & Children First Bookstore (5233 N. Clark St., Chicago, 773-769-9299) on Thursday, November 3 , 2011 at 7:00 p.m. for a book reading. [WindyCityMedia]

Interview: Meredtih Baxter on Coming Out: Former Family Ties star Meredith Baxter talked to the GA Voice about her new memoir, Untied, LGBT rights, and her struggle to come out of the closet. [TheGAVoice]

Opinion: Why California Students Should Know That Harvey Milk Was Gay: In this LA Times Op-ed, Lorri L. Jean and C. Scott Miller argue that LGBT inclusion in the classroom is absolutely necessary. They wrote:

“LGBT people, like all other people, are about much more than their sexuality, and people such as Milk, Barbara Jordan and Bayard Rustin have made undeniably significant contributions to society that should never have been kept out of social studies lessons. To tell their stories without disclosing their sexual orientation suggests there’s something so wrong with being LGBT.” [LATimes]

Turning the Page on Homophobia in Publishing: Kathi Wolfe comments on how works by lesbians like Sarah Waters, Jane Lynch, and Ellen DeGeneres are slowly appearing on the reading lists of older, heterosexual book lovers. [WashingtonBlade]

DC Comics Relaunch: 10 Ways New Teen Titan, Bunker, Can Debunk the Gay Other: Slated to be the only gay Teen Titan, Bunker will be portrayed as “effeminate” and don a purple suit. Eric Glover writes that though many LGBT readers fear another gay male cliché, portraying this superhero as flamboyant could be a good thing, if done correctly. He stated:

“While writing solely non-femme gay characters in comics may have been sorely needed at one point to correct lopsided portrayals of queer Americans, Bunker could be an exciting new method of reintroducing “camp” to big comics without stigma, and deeming that aspect of gay culture as something to celebrate rather than be embarrassed about.” [InsidePulse]

Joel Osteen Says Bullied LGBT Students “Don’t Have to Let People Steal Their Power”: The Examiner’s Becky Perez Schwartz responds to recent comments made by preacher and author Joel Osteen about bullying carried out against the LGBT community. She argues:

“Osteen trivializes the issue of the bullying faced by gay and lesbian teens in the LGBT community. If it were that easy to keep others from ‘stealing your power’, would it not be as easy to not take your life?” [Examiner]